Comic Relief has announced a £50,000 cash pot to help North East projects celebrate Red Nose Day.

The Community Cash fund will provide grants of £500 to £1,000 to small community organisations that have been recognised in helping people through tough times.

Applications are now open, with the Community Foundation Tyne and Wear and Northumberland working with Comic Relief to get the cash to the groups that need it most.

Mark Pierce, from Tyne and Wear and Northumberland Community Foundation, which will manage the fund on behalf of Comic Relief, said: “These small grants really do transform the fortunes of the local organisations they benefit.”

Lenny Henry who launched the first Red Nose Day event in 1988 and will present the show on the night (Image: PA)

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Gilly Green, head of UK grants, said: “The Comic Relief Community Cash initiative is extremely important to Comic Relief and enables us to help more than a thousand smaller projects all across the UK.

“The grants can be used for a wide variety of needs, from equipment for disability sports clubs, to activities bringing communities together, to specialist training for volunteers providing essential support.